Has Amitabh Bachhan left Manipur?
By: Oinam Doren *
I grew up with a stringent diet of Hindi films, Hindi film songs, Hindi film magazines and Amitabh Bachhan. (James Bond, Jackie Chan & Bruce Lee is another story). Hindi film posters were an incessant normal sight in grim walls and buildings of market places everywhere.
We watched Hindi films in theatre, Doordarshan or with VHS tapes at home. Satellite channels made its foray in the early 90's.
My childhood gang or I would make sure we never miss a single new film in the local theatre. I was also incorrigibly addicted to Hindi films shown in Doordarshan leading to routine fight with parents. Sometimes, my friends and I would seek access in theatres by illicitly paying a few bucks to the man at the entrance.
There was also a guy in our neighboring colony well adept at sneaking inside the theatre during interval. We were his subservient disciples. We call it 'half ta changba'.
Of course, the last two amusing strategies were lucratively possible only when less people start attending a particular film.
Those days, a pervasive rage hit the colony kids; playing police-robber games by wielding guns and crooning 'yeh dosti hum nahi todenge' from SHOLAY. You call it THE SHOLAY EFFECT. After I watch DOSTI, the story of 2 friends; one blind and the other lame playing harmonica, you guess what I did.
I couldn't escape it. I slyly harassed my parents to posses a harmonica.
In school, I suddenly grew lanky. Elders would proclaim 'you are growing tall like Amitabh Bachhan'.
A Bollowood Movie - Rangeela
Those were the days when ASHIQUIE hit local cinema. Rahul Roy 's hair was a craze intensely effacing the youth. The smart gang leader who conducted us stealthily inside the theatre during intervals had found another cinematic mission. He bought a Filmfare magazine featuring Rahul Roy and zealously grew his hair styling it like him.
It worked. Soon the cheering public acclaimed him with the title 'Rahul Roy'. Even I couldn't escape the Mr. Roy fever for a period. I borrowed his magazine with much persuasion on the harsh condition that I would return it in a week without any unwarranted damages.
Mr. Ass! He worshipped every page of Mr.Roy. (Ass because I was denied from tearing even one single page of Mr. Roy)
In fact, the period itself was bizarre. So many self-styled Rahul Roy started popping up all over the places. I wouldn't lie; some looked more real than the original. Even the music of ASHIQUIE was a hit.
You hear it creating a havoc everywhere; in loud speakers during festivals, in shops, buses. I would write out all the songs employing the play-pause buttons of my stereo tape and used to croon loudly in my room.
A Bollowood siren
When RANGEELA hit theatres, Urmila's costume of 'boot and maxi' in the song 'Rangeela re'designed by Manish Malhotra created a rage among young gals. The period itself was bizarre. So many pirated copies of Urmila started popping up all over the places. Even the shoes wore in schools and colleges were all Rangeela boots.
In higher school during the 90's, my friends and I secretly bunked classes to watch DILWALE DULHANIYA LEJAYENGE. The period itself was bizarre. My friends haughtily confessed of having watched it 10-15 times. It was some sort of a pride issue.
When I finally did, Amrish Puri's dialogue 'mere Punjab ki mitti, mere Punjab ki khusboo' and Aditya Chopra's lavish picturisation of the yellow mustard fields mesmerized me to love Punjab & everything related to Punjab; paratha, lassi, sardar woman in salwar & kameej coyly clad in dupatta, the green fields.
DDLJ postcards and music was a rage in my room. Later on going to Punjab, I realized I felt more attracted to Punjabi girls and dearly plan to tour the village sides with a camera someday.
A Bollowood Movie - DDLJ
Chitramala-it was another consequent harvest of Hindi cinema. In any school, college functions or yearly scheduled festivals of the state you see guiltless kids to oldies seamlessly dancing to Hindi film songs wearing ghaghra or other film costumes. Madhuri dixit was a big craze for little gals.
Those were the wistful days in Manipur.
In September 2000, a major Underground outfit in Manipur banned screening of Hindi films and Hindi channels on cable network. Their view - Hindi film is deteriorating or corrupting the Manipuri culture.
Since then, theatres in Manipur that sustained on Hindi films started disappearing one by one. They were either shut down or were subsequently converted to educational institutes, shopping complex. The theatre owners, the people employed in them or those small business units around the cinema complex or the thriving music shops have lost their income.
Moreover, no more did you hear again Hindi film music in the market places, in shops, buses or festivals. (It would be interesting to note here that music videos are also ban. The cultural fundamentalist say they are deteriorating the Manipuri youth. Making music videos in Manipur is cheap, a quick and easy way to fame.
Therefore, a plethora of actors in all shapes and sizes started mushrooming in every colony. It was also slowly evolving into a quick and easy way of wooing matrimonial spouse among the youth. "The music video revolution suddenly escalated to a boom in wedding ceremonies and population explosion" as they say).
But is Hindi cinema really death in Manipur? Absolutely not! The black marketers are thriving. You can still watch the latest Hindi films on pirated cd's or dvd's. The superfluous situation is similar to that of Pakistan. Though all deals of buying or lending occurs "hush hush" or "don't tell anyone" gestures, it is an open new market.
Pirated films reach the library owners from Guwahati, Calcutta or Delhi or a nominal selection of them seep in through the international border from China. Alternatively, you get to see them in Doordarshan or through DTH disc antennas, another craze these days. (Local cable network does not provide Hindi film channels due to the ban).
People yearning to listen to Hindi film music salvage it from Guwahati or through an acquaintance residing outside Manipur. Amitabh Bachhan couldn't be banned. Bollywood rules!
Moreover, peep into the local films churned out from the Manipur film industry. The same stereotyped formula of melodrama, song and dance sequence or the glamour of Bollywood is their filmmaking modal.
The format, the style they all look the same. The story lines or the song tunes burn of oomph and awe of popular Hindi films. Originality, local culture or social themes are rare in Manipuri cinema today.
Bollywood reign supreme. Amitabh bachhan hasn't left Manipur.
God bless the fundamentalist!